Conjugates of naphthalene and dipeptides produce molecular hydrogelators with high efficiency of hydrogelation and superhelical nanofibers

Here we report a new class of molecular hydrogelators based on the conjugates of dipeptide and (naphthalen-2-yloxy)acetic acid. They form hydrogels efficiently—the lowest concentration for them to gel water is 0.07 wt%. Two hydrogelators show the ability to form helical nanofibers within the hydrogels, and the chirality of the hydrogelators apparently dictates the handedness of the nanofibers—D-peptide and L-peptide afford left-handed and right-handed self-assembled nanofibers in the hydrogels, respectively. Moreover, MTT assay of the viability of cells indicates that these molecular hydrogelators are biocompatible.